PRESS RELEASE
Support women from Burma: Donate your panties for peace!
Funds will go directly to organizations working with victims of humanitarian crisis
MONTREAL – May 27, 2008 – Starting today, women in Quebec and across Canada are invited to donate their panties to a unique international effort to bring an end to Burma’s brutal military regime and the profound suffering it is inflicting on the population of Burma.
A Montreal press conference held today marks the official launch of Panties for Peace!, a national campaign led by a coalition of feminist and civil society organizations coordinated by la Fédération des Femmes du Québec (Quebec Women’s Federation) and the Rights & Democracy Network.
Panties for Peace! was conceived last October by Lanna Action for Burma (LAB), a women’s organization based on Burma’s border with Thailand, in response to the military regime’s violent crackdown on monk-led pro-democracy demonstrations. The campaign plays on the regime leaders’ superstitious fear that contact with a woman’s underpants will rob them of their power. Women in Australia, Singapore, the Philippines, Brazil and across Europe have since heeded LAB’s call to post their panties to local Burmese embassies to protest against the regime’s massive violations of human rights, especially those committed against Burma’s women.
“The horrible aftermath of Cyclone Nargis has helped remind us all of the military regime's corruption and tyranny,” says Lanna Action for Burma. “The regime is now in a weakened state and we must use every power at our disposal to see it toppled once and for all.”
Along with their call for panties, Montreal organizers are also raising much-needed funds that will be sent directly to organizations working with victims of the humanitarian crisis inside Burma.
“In recent weeks we have all watched with horror the humanitarian tragedy unfolding in Burma and this is a unique and important opportunity for women in Quebec to get involved and help raise funds and awareness about the military regime’s systematic use of rape and other brutalities against our sisters from Burma,” said Michèle Asselin, President of the FFQ.
“The Rights & Democracy Network will see to it that Lanna Action for Burma’s message is heard across Canada through our delegations on more than 30 Canadian campuses,” said Sophie Rondeau, the Network’s coordinator. “We welcome this opportunity to show our solidarity with the courageous women of Burma.”
More information available at www.pantiesforpeace.ca
To book interviews with the coalition’s spokeswomen, please contact:
Steve Smith, Rights & Democracy, 514-898-4157
Louis Moubarak, Rights & Democracy, 514-984-0622
Organizations supporting Lanna Action for Burma’s Panties for Peace campaign:
Amis (es) québécois (es) de la Birmanie (AQB)
AQOCI (Association québécoise des organismes de coopération internationale),
Association pour la défense des droits sociaux Québec métro,
CALACS de Rouyn-Noranda,
CALACS Entre Elles - Lac St-Jean,
Canadian Friends of Burma (CFOB) / Amis (es) canadiens (nes) de la Birmanie
Centr’Elles, comité d’action des femmes d’Avignon
Centre Au Cœur des Femmes,
Centre avec des Elles,
Centre de femmes de la MRC de Bonaventure,
Centre de femmes l'Éclaircie,
Centre de femmes l'Étincelle de Baie-Comeau,
Centre de femmes Parmi Elles,
Centre des femmes italiennes de Montréal
Centre-Femmes du Grand-Portage,
Comité femmes du Front commun des personnes assistées sociales du Québec,
Conseil d’intervention pour l’accès des femmes au travail,
CUSO (anciennement Canadian University Service Overseas),
Fédération des femmes du Québec,
Fédération des ressources d’hébergement pour femmes violentées et en difficulté du Québec,
Fédération québécoise pour le planning des naissances,
Femmes en Mouvement,
L’R des centres de femmes du Québec,
L'autre Parole,
Point d'appui,
Regroupement Naissance-Renaissance,
Regroupement provincial des maisons d’hébergement et de transition pour femmes victimes de violence conjugale,
Regroupement québécois des CALACS (centres d’aide et de lutte contre les agressions à caractère sexuel),
Reporters sans frontières Canada
Réseau Droits et Démocratie.
